Parts and servicing
Service schedule
There’s nothing much to deter the home mechanic from working on a GSX-R1000 — access is reasonable (by modern standards) and there’s no complicated gadgetry to deal with — it’s just a big, conventional bike. You’ll be wise to invest in a paddock stand though. The full factory service manual is easy to find as a download. The service schedule’s a bit nonsensical, obviously designed to drive workshop traffic. Oil change and general checks at 4000 miles; oil and spark plugs changed at 7500; oil, filter and air filter changed at 11,000 and valve clearances checked at 14,500 miles. Sensible owners adapt the schedule to the real world — oil changes every 4000 miles, filters and plugs changed every 8000, all of the above plus valve clearances at 16k. In addition, coolant and brake fluid are due a change every two years and brake hoses at four-year intervals.
New and used parts prices
Don’t assume OE parts will be prohibitive. For a 2009 model, genuine oil and air filters are £12.82 and £26.30 respectively, a genuine battery is £52.47 and front discs are a very reasonable £127.81 each (we’ve seen used ones listed for more than that). Mirrors are £72.60 each and clip-ons £78.43 a piece, while genuine brake pads are thirty quid a pair including shims. Wemoto can undercut those prices with pattern bits of course — £5.28 and £14.50 for oil and air filters, and £20.92 for Hh-rated brake pads. They can also do a de-cat Y-piece for the exhaust at about £160, fork seals for £8.56 a pair and a complete chain and sprocket kit for less than a ton.
There’s no shortage of used parts either — unsurprisingly though, they tend to be from heavily crashed bikes, so cosmetics and front end parts are harder to find. A quick trawl through the usual venues online turned up brake calipers at £130 the pair, forks for around £500 the pair and radiators from around £200.